When You Stop Doing Everything You Start Scaling Everything: Brett Riley on Why Culture and Trust Are Your Most Defensible Moat

Nine years ago, Brett Riley and his wife Jenny started Itarmi with a spreadsheet, a LinkedIn account, and an idea borrowed from a New York cab ride. Today, the business puts over 4,000 engineers into 170 countries, built on a self-funded, self-built SaaS platform that took nearly a decade to get right.

In this episode of Drive It Like You Stole It, Brett talks candidly with James Summers about the pain of building tech as a non-technical founder, the moment he had to admit his sales skills were holding the business back, and why hiring a head of sales was one of the hardest but most valuable decisions he's made. He shares the story behind the company's wolf-pack culture, why he refuses to pay engineers below fair global rates, and how running a business with your spouse means facing hostile takeovers and internal battles most founders never talk about.

Brett also opens up on burnout, control, attention deficit challenges, and why he's now actively trying to work himself out of a job. If you're building a team, wrestling with founder ego, or wondering how AI will reshape services businesses over the next decade, this one's for you.

Reach Brett here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brett-riley-9235321/

Find ITARMI here: https://itarmi.com/

Contact James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamjamessummers

Work with James Summers: https://bloomcoach.uk/